AFC Wimbledon boss Neil Ardley admitted he took his life in his hands with a 4-3-3 formation and two wingers – but was delighted the brave gamble paid off with a fantastic 3-1 away win at Southend last night.

Goals from Pim Balkestein, Jack Midson and Luke Moore earned the Dons another three vital points in their battle against the drop, despite falling behind to Sean Clohessy's penalty.

“We wanted to go brave, and were disappointed to go 1-0 down to a sloppy penalty," said Ardley.

“But credit the boys. They showed character to come back.

“Jack (Midson) came on and did brilliantly as did Luke Moore. But everyone on the bench did a job – even those that didn’t play were encouraging from the sidelines.”

The unthinkable a couple of months back of four wins on the spin now looks a distinct possibility, with Dons facing fellow strugglers Aldershot and Accrington away in the next two games.

Ardley reckons if the team are as brave as they were against Southend – the points will follow.

He added: “We’ve got to be brave like we were against a team fighting for the play-offs, but we’re going there to try and win.”

The only downer on the night was hamstring injury to Balkestein who had a hand, literally, in both first-half goals.

The defender handled in the box for a successful Southend penalty and then equalised with a header before he pulled up to be replaced by Jack Midson.

Ardley feared the worst.

He said: “It’s a difficult one for Pim who was gutted in the dressing room. We’ll get it scanned and it’s fingers crossed.”

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